Railway brake



C. J. NASH RAILWAY BRAKE Aug. 6, 1929.

Filed April 9, 1927 Q .Euafifir: I

Claude/5 J Mas/i Patented Aug. 6, 1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES J. NASH, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, AS$IGNOR TO UNIVERSAL DRAFT GEAR ATTACHMENT 00., A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

RAILWAY BRAKE.

Application filed April 9,

This invention relates to brakes for railway cars, and more particularly to the brake operating mechanism.

One of the objects of the invention is the provision of new and improved brake operating mechanism that may be, assembled with a minimum of time and labor and when assembled is etficiently held in operative position.

Another object of the invention is the provision of new and improved means for holding the upper and lower bearings for the winding drum in perfect alinement.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a brake operating mechanism that is cheap to manufacture, easily assembled, composed of few moving parts, eilicient in operation, and that is not likely to become broken or get out of order.

Other and further objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is an end elevation .01": a portion of a railway car showing the invention in position therein; and

Fig. 2 is a section on line 22 of Fig. 1.

On the drawings, the reference character 10 designates a car end, or more specifically the end sill of a railway car on which the brake operating mechanism is mounted.

In the construction of operating mechanism for railway brakes, it is desirable that bolts, nuts, cotter pins and the like for holding the mechanism in assembled relation be eliminated as far as possible because they are a continual source of trouble and annoyance,

inasmuch as they are constantly breaking or becoming loose, or getting lost.

In the present invention these disadvantag'es are overcome by an arrangement in which the brake operating mechanism is so constructed that it is assembled without the use of bolts, nuts, keys or pins. In the form of the device selected to illustrate one embodiment of the invention a unitary bracket 11 comprising a body portion 12 having a laterally extending flange 13 and a depending portion 14 is employed. The depending portion 14 extends downwardly and outwardly from the body portion 12. The depending portion 14 is preferably in the form of a stirrup having a bearing, 16 in its horizontal portlon 17 The depending portion 14 may, if

1927. Serial No. 182,331.

desired, be provided with a reinforcing flange 18 for strengthening said portion. 7' 7 The body portion 12 is provided with a laterally extending flange or ledge portion 19 which is provided with an enlarged bearing 21 in axial alinement with the bearing 16.

A suitable rotatable or brake operating member which, for convenience of description, will be termed a sleeve 22, which may, if desired, be provided with a conventional conical winding drum 23, to which the brake chain 20 is attached, is journaled in said bearings 16 and 21. The lower end of the sleeve 22 in provided with a journal 24 for engaging the'bearing 16 and the upper end of the sleeve is enlarged as at 25 to form a journal for the enlarged bearing 21.

A ratchet wheel 26 provided with ratchet teeth 27 on its under side and having a hub 28 for engaging the upper end of the sleeve 22 is provided for holding the brake in applied position. A pawl 33 pivoted to upstanding ears 34 on the ledge or flange 19 is provided for engaging the teeth 27 for holding the ratchet wheel in adjusted position. The pawl is held in or out of engagement with the ratchet teeth by the pivoted weight 35 in a manner well known in the art.

The sleeve 22 and ratchet wheel 26 are provided with alined angular openings through which the angular staff 29 extends. The staff 29 may, if desired, be slidably mounted in the axial openings in the sleeve and ratchet wheel and is adapted to be held in position by asli'dable latch 31 having a ledge 82 for engaging beneath the staff when the same is elevated. The latch is provided with a projection or handle 35 for manually moving the same upwardly out of the path of the staff when it is desired tov lower the staff and brake wheel. The latch and cooperating mechanism is disclosed and claimed in application of Charles-J. Nash and Jack Vilson, Serial No. 7 1,466, filed December 10, 1925, and it is not thought necessary to further describe the same.

The ratchet wheel 26 is held in lowered position by an overhanging or retainer member 36 which may be and preferably is integral with the bracket 11. The retaining member 36 prevents the ratchet wheel 26 from rising, which in turn holds the sleeve 22 in lowered position with the journal 24 in the bearing 16.

In assembling the device, the upper end of the sleeve 22 is inserted through the bearing 21 and then lowered with the journal 2% in the bearing 16, after which the ratchet wheel is placed on top of the upper end of the sleeve beneath the-retaining member 36 and wii tih its axial opening in al inement with the axial opening in the sleeve 22. The parts are then fastened in assembled relation by inserting the angular brake staff 29 through said alincd openings.

The bracket is attached in any suitable manner to the endotl? the car, asby means of rivets 37. and :38 which secure the bracket to the end sill. l0, 7

It will thus be seen 'lmt the parts may be assembled with minimum amount of tjine and labor, and when assembled the constriiction is rigid, the bearings perfectly .a'lined and the elements held in assembled relation without the use (or bolts, screwsor pins.

The brake stall 29 may be secured to the sleeve 22 in any suitable manner, this feature bein immaterial s0 far as-the present invention is concerned, It is shown as being slidably mounted in vthe sleeve, but it may be other.

lVhile I have shown the bracket 11 as being u -ita y st uc u e, i under od it may be otherwise, so long as the bearings 16 and 2-1 are held in vertical alinement. It is desirable that these bearings be held in vertical ali-nement order that there shall be no bind ing of the journals on the winding mechanism during the operation of applying the brakes,

It is thought from the foregoing taken in co nection with the accompanying drawings, tha the construction and operation of my device will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and. that various changes in size, Sh ms, proportion and details of cons-true.- tion may be made without departing T 1 the spir and scope of the appended claims,

I claim as my invention:

1, In a brake mechanism, a casting having a pair of alined openings therein ior forming bez- 'ings, a sleeve having a winding drum jlly secured thereon, ared-uced portion on said sleeve for forming a journal for engage in g the lower bearing, an angular brake shaft iirlidably e agi said sleeve, a ratchet hav: ing an Lllxu 1 opening for receiving said shaft,

V and a stop for preventing the vertical movement of said ratchet and sleeve when the parts are a SSQll'lblGCl.

- 2. In a brake mechanism for railway cars, an upper and a lower bearing, a sleeve having a reduced portion at its lower end for engagme said lower bearing, said upper hearing of a at size to permit said sleeve to slide therein, an angular stafi' slida-blo in a corresponding axial Openingin said sleeve, a ratchet wheel engaging the upper end of said sleeve for preventing vertical movement.

thereof, and means for preventing vertical movement of said ratchet.

bearings, said lower journal being provided with a shoulder for limiting its downward movement through said lower bearing, the diameter of the upper portion of said member beine' less than the internal diameter of said upper bearing. whereby said member may be placed in position by inserting the upper end thereof throughsaid upper bearing and then lowering the lower journal into said lower bearing,- and means for rotating said member.

4. In a railway brake operating mechanism, a pair of ,alined bearings, means for supporting said bearings inspaced relation on a railway car, a rotating member having a pair Lot journals thereon for engaging said bearings respectively, one of said journals being slidalole through the corresponding bearing for permitting the insertion of the other journal in its bearing, and means for preventing the disengagement of said journals and hearings when the same are assembled. I a

5. In a railway brake operating mechanism, a pair of al-ined bearings, means for supporting said bearings in spaced relation on a railwaycar, a rotating member having a pair of journals thereon for engaging said bearings respectively, one ot said journals being slidable through the corresponding bearing for permittingthe insertion of the other journal in its bearing, a ratchet wheel in engagement with said rotating member, a staff engaging said wheel. and rotating member, and a retaining member for limiting the separation of said wheel and rotating member. I

6. In a brake operating mechanism, a bracket, means for attaching said bracket to a. railway car, a laterally eXtend-ingledge on said bracket, a retainer member extending laterally over said ledge in spaced relation thereto, said bracket terminating in a downwardly and laterally extending stirrup, and alined hearings in said ledge and stirrup;

7. In a railway brake operating mecha nism, a bracket having alatera'lly extending ledge member, a downwardly and laterally extending stirrup member on said bracket, alined hearings in said ledge and stirrup members, a rotating member having journals for engaging said bearings, the bearing in said-ledge member being of sufiicient diameter to permit the rotating member to be slid therethrough for the insertion ofthe other journal in the bearing in the stirrup memher, a ratchet element on said rotating memher, an operating staff for simultaneously turning said rotating member and ratchet element, a retaining member on said bracket tor preventing the disengagement 01. said journals and bearings, and apawl pivotally mounted on said ledge for engaging said ratchet.

8. In a brake operating mechanism, an upper bearing a lower bearing, a rotating memher having an upper journal for engaging said upper bearing and a lower journal for engaging said lower bearing, a winding member on said rotating member adjacent to the lower end thereof, the internal diameter of said upper bearing being less than the diameter of said winding member but greater than the diameter of the upper portion of said rotating member, whereby said last named member may be placed in posit-ion by inserting said upper journal through the upper bearing, moving said rotating member into axial alignment with the axis of said bearings, and lowering said journals into said bearings, and a staff for operating said rotatmg member.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

CHAR-LES J. NASH. 

